In many public and private settings, multiple people use the same device to conduct transactions. For example, at home, multiple family members may use the same computer to purchase goods and/or services from an online retailer. In a public setting, scores of people may use the same terminal to conduct financial transactions, such as a money transfer transaction with a money transfer service provider, or deposits or withdrawals with an automated teller machine from a bank account.
While the vast majority of financial transactions are conducted honestly, inevitably, a small portion of people attempt to exploit weaknesses of transaction systems to commit fraud, launder money, or otherwise commit illegal or immoral activities. As an example of such a fraudulent transaction, a person may attempt to obscure his identity while sending or receiving a money transfer. This may be an attempt to make the transaction untraceable or to make it impossible to determine if the money originates from an illegal source. Obscuring the identity of a person participating in a financial transaction may also be an attempt to avoid being detected because the person's name appears on the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control's (OFAC) Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. Besides obscuring his or her identity during money transfers, a person may attempt to obscure his identity when attempting to conduct an online purchase using a stolen transaction card number (e.g., a card or number linked to a credit card account, debit card account, stored value account, or gift card). In another example, the person may attempt to (electronically) sign a contract under someone else's name in order to receive the benefit but avoid contractual requirements. For example, agreeing to be a member in a wine of the month club for a year may result in an initial free case of wine (which the perpetrator of the fraud would attempt to acquire), while the payment information provided by the fraudster would be linked to someone else (possibly real or imaginary).
This invention addresses these and other problems.